Little Girl Lost
by screaming phoenix
Summary: This is my submission to Zaratan's Halloween Contest. Kim and Ron find a young girl, a missing house and a deadly cycle about to repeat itself. This is finally done! Ok so it's a month late I did finish it!
1. Chapter 1

This is my submission to Zaratan's Halloween Contest.

Disney still owns most of the characters you read here;I'm just borrowing them for the moment.  
Abigail is mine,however.

**Mad thanks to CajunBear73 for pointing out my mistakes and miscues;you still rock hard!**

**--**

**Little Girl Lost**

The full moon cast an ethereal glow over the landscape, throwing long shadows across the nearly deserted backcountry road. The bare branches of the nearby trees, stripped of their autumn finery, give the impression of arthritic limbs reaching toward some unknown and unseen goal. Deep shadows collected alongside the ribbon of concrete. Hinting at hidden things, half forgotten memories of strange dreams and fantasy shrouded and buried in the deep of the subconscious. Luminescent eyes crouched in the nearby darkness. Watching with unblinking eyes, hinting at some obscure secret, they stare off into the light shining from the full moon overhead. The nearby undergrowth rustles softly while the tree branches sway to some unfelt breeze. Small tree limbs scrape against each other; the dry branches clacking like finger bones from some abandoned and forgotten corpse. Fallen leaves, caught in a whirlwind, circle and dance tracking a path across the concrete to disappear in a shower of red, gold and brown. This is the near wood, where man has treaded lightly. The only evidence that man has ever seen this place; the bright strip of concrete, illuminated by the moon, that weaves its way through the country side and disappears like a forgotten dream over the next hill.

Next is the deep wood, which man has no sway over. Here predator and prey dance to the eternal pattern of survival. The balance of the living and the dead in the great cosmic circle of life, played out in the endless cycle of time.

In this place of nature there stands a house in a small clearing. Here there is a feeling, an atmosphere of wrongness, which envelops this place. Suggestions of darkness not associated with the absence of light but, the absence of life as well. An impression of death delayed too long and tone of malevolence that seeps into the very ground and corrupts the surrounding area. No grass grows in the clearing, no flowers or anything that might suggest life. The nearby trees grow twisted and stunted, their trunks warped in a savage parody of the surrounding forest, they strain to reach the open sky as if beseeching some unknown power to release them from the constant torment they suffer.

A shadow passes along the front of the dilapidated structure. The form appears human but twisted and bent, a mockery of a man. Dressed in a shabby coat and cast off clothing it walks up to the front of the house and stands motionless before it. He then glances about him and shuffles into the woods again, disappearing into the trees.

There stands a figure just inside the woods surrounding the house, eyes focused on the structure. It watches the shambling figure retreat into the deep woods. Turning its head until the figure has departed. Again its head slowly tracks back to the house. A small smile creases its face and the movement of facial muscles causes the glasses it wears to momentary catch and reflects the moonlight, giving it an owlish look.

"The cycle is nearing its end." The figure whispers to itself. "Time to put an end to this evil, time for a small amount of justice for you and the peace you deserve."

The approaching vehicle was quickly becoming the most visible symbol of both: the young woman driving it, and the team that used it to respond to the local calls of assistance that regularly came the teen's way. The Roth SL Coupe rode the concrete ribbon underneath it with a smooth motion that paid complement to the technical knowledge of the two young geniuses who had modified the car for their sister's use. Kim possible sat behind the wheel of her car and sighed at the sitch she found herself in. Ron had been required to attend a family gathering tonight so her Friday night, Ron night, had to be cancelled. He had left right after the game and wouldn't be available until at least Sunday. That meant no Ron-shine this weekend. Then Tara had called for a favor and needed a ride to her boyfriend's house. That was the reason she was currently driving down this forgotten stretch of Colorado so late at night.

Kim's eyes narrowed at what she thought she saw ahead of her. As her car got closer to what she had noticed, she confirmed that what she thought she saw was indeed what was in front of her. It was a girl! Walking on the side of an almost deserted road at midnight! Where were her parents? What was she doing here?

Kim slowed the Sloth down until she was close to the child. Yep, she thought, child! She couldn't be any older than Jim or Tim!

Kim stopped and got out of the car, careful to show the young girl that she meant no harm.

"Hello, are you lost?" Kim asked of the young girl who had stopped walking and was now looking at Kim with an odd expression on her face.

Getting no response from the girl Kim tried again.

"Do you know where your parents are? Can I help you in anyway? Where do you live?"

The child suddenly looked down the road and pointed.

"I live down the road." She replied with an odd catch in her voice. "Just down there."

"Can I give you a ride?"

"OK, I guess."

Kim walked from her side of the car to the passenger side and opens the door for the young girl. As she climbed in Kim noticed that she is wearing a dress design she has never seen before. It was a shapeless thing, poorly made, with a lot of wear obvious to Kim. She also noticed she had no shoes on.

"Are you cold? Would you like something to wear?"

"A little."

Kim shrugged out of her Club Banana jacket Ron had given her and placed it over the girl's thin shoulders.

"Now show me where you live."

Kim climbed behind the wheel, shut the door, and started driving down the road.

Kim tried to make conversation with the young girl.

"What's your name? Can you tell me?"

"Abigail." The girl replied softly.

"Abigail, that's a pretty name. Were you named after someone in your family?"

The young girl just looked down the road until she spoke up again.

"There," the girl suddenly exclaimed. "Just beyond the trees."

Kim slowed down and pulled over to the side of the road, and got out to survey the scene.

"Are you sure about this? I don't see anything here"

The girl just nodded and got out of the car.

"I live just past those trees." The girl pointed to something in the darkness.

Kim continued to look around a spotted a path that went between the two trees the girl had pointed to.

"All right lets go and get you home."

Kim and the girl walked up the path until they came upon a small clearing with a small house in the middle. Kim was hesitant about taking the girl to the house. Her weirdar was going off, when an older woman came out of the house and exclaimed.

"Abigail, just where have you been? You gave me such a fright when I couldn't find you!" The older woman held out her hand for the child, who ran to her side.

"I was walking grandma and the nice lady gave me a ride home."

"You shouldn't be out walking this late at night child, it's too dangerous."

"Yes, grandma."

The older woman turned to Kim and started to thank her profusely.

"Young lady I can't begin to thank you for bringing Abby home to me. I tell her all the time not to go out alone but, she just likes to wander around."

"No big ma'am. I'm happy I could help."

The elder woman turned to fully face Kim, the moonlight catching on her glasses, giving her an owlish look.

"I believe that you have a partner don't you? The woman asked with an odd catch in her voice.

"Yes ma'am, Ron Stoppable. He's busy right now or he would be here; and he's more than my partner he's my boyfriend."

"It's good to have someone who loves you." The elder woman replied with a peculiar look on her face. "You should always remember to trust the ones you love."

With that unusual statement, the elder woman turned and started to walk to the house.

"Good night Miss Possible and thank you again for bringing Abby back to me." She called out over her shoulder.

Kim watched as the older woman approached the young girl and gathered her into a hug. Kim was about to turn back to her car when she noticed a red light glowing at the base of the young girl's neck. Before she could completely turn back around the pair was gone. She supposed they went into the house, so she started back to her car. It was getting late and she was tired.

Kim was half-way home before she remembered that the young girl still had her Club Banana jacket. 'I'll have to go back there tomorrow', she thought, driving down the road to her home and bed.

**Sunday Afternoon**

"K.P. are you sure this is the same road?"

"For the tenth time Ron, yes. I was driving down this road when I found the girl walking."

"I'm just saying, it was dark, you were tired, and you could have made a mistake."

"Sorry Ron." Wade's voice came over the on board communication system. "But G.P.S. coordinates confirm that this is the same road Kim was driving down Friday night."

"How can you be sure about that? I mean you weren't talking to her that night was you?"

"No, but the Sloth does have a tracking chip in it. I just accessed the computer records and found out where the car was that night."

"What a minute! You can tell where the car has been, even if you're not talking to us?"

"Of course, how do you think I can tack you both? I have full access to all the cars data. Including all those late night drives to Lookout Point."

At the mention of the couples favorite make out point Kim begins to blush and Ron looks worried.

"Wade my man, you might want to delete those files and make sure Kim's dad never sees them OK?"

"Chill Ron, my system is hacker proof. Your secret is safe with me. Kim, G.P.S. indicates you were stopped around here Friday night."

"Come on Ron, let's just get my jacket and go home OK?" Kim questioned as she pulled the Sloth over and stopped the engine.

Kim and Ron exit the car and Kim begins to scout around for any landmarks she might recognize. She pulls up short and points to a path partially hidden between two trees.

"That's the path Ron. See I told you. We just follow it for a short while and we should come to a clearing."

Kim and Ron follow the path until they come to the clearing. What they see surprises Ron and shocks Kim. The clearing is just where she expected it but the house it totally different. The one in front of her is broken down and in the process of falling apart. The clearing is devoid of any vegetation and there is an aura of despair and decay about the place.

"K.P. are you sure about this? I'm getting the spilly-willys about this place."

"Ron you heard Wade, this is the place."

"Well who did you meet, Dracula's mother?"

"No I tell you it was a young girl and her grandmother. That place looked normal then."

'K.P. be reasonable, that house hasn't been lived it for decades."

"Ron I tell you this is the place." Kim explained as she moved toward the house.

"Kim, please get back here, that place feels like five hundred miles of very bad road." Ron pleaded.

Kim had to agree with Ron. The vibes she was getting off this place was making, even her, uneasy. Kim was about to go back when she spotted something hanging from a nail on the porch, edging closer Kim realized it was her missing Club Banana jacket. Screwing up her courage Kim sprinted to the porch, grabbed her jacket, and sprinted back to Ron.

"Come on let's get out of here." Kim called as she ran back to the Sloth.

"Right behind you K.P.!" Ron called running after her.

Driving back home Kim began to calm down and helped keep Ron from hyperventilating and passing out.

Later that night Kim and Ron were upstairs in her room going over the day's events.

"I don't get it K.P. who would leave your jacket at a haunted house?"

"Ron what makes you think it's haunted?"

"Are you kidding? I remember you, Kim Possible, 'The girl who can do anything',running faster than me away from things that can harm you. When was the last time that happened?"

Kim had to concede that Ron had a point. She had taken off like, well Ron, when Monkey Fist was after him. That so wasn't her! She had to admit that the house and the clearing had given her the 'spilly-willys' as Ron put it. There was that feeling of wrongness that Ron had picked up on. There was just something else, something fundamentally off about that house. She wasn't sure what it was but she was determined to find out.

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A/N Well this is my first time both entering one of these contests and writing in this style, tell me what you think.


	2. Caruthers House

Chapter 2

Caruthers House

Disney still owns Kim Possible and it still vexes me!

A huge shout out to **CajunBear73**, for his mad Beta skills.

A big thank you to those of you who reviewed the first chapter: **daccu65, Kim's 1 fan, Sentinel 103, Michael Howard and CajunBear73.** Thanks also to those who read it but didn't review. I hope this second chapter meets with your approval.

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"Go Wade,"

Kim replied to the familiar four tone signal of her Kimmunicator as she sat before her home computer. Wade's face appeared on the screen before her, clutching his ever-present slupster.

"I have some news for you about your mystery house Kim. Is Ron there?"

"Here Wade."

Ron replied from where he was sitting on Kim's bed as he got up and walked to the computer screen. He put his hands on Kim's shoulders as he studied his friend on the screen.

"Ok first, there are no recent records of any house being built there."

"It did look pretty old and delpasted when I went there with Kim" Ron remarked.

"Think you mean dilapidated Ron." Wade corrected.

"Whatever; it looked old and rundown to me." Ron replied

Kim had to bite back a denial when Ron had mentioned the house's apparent age. She was sure that, the first time she saw that house; it was in a much better condition than when she went back there with Ron the next day.

"Anyway, I went back as far as I could with the oldest records I could find in the county records office. The earliest records I could find dated back to the 1880's... Kim I think you may have found the old Caruthers House!"

"Caruthers House? Why does that name sound familiar?" Kim wondered out loud.

"The disappearing house?" Ron asked, beginning to get agitated. "The house where people were found dead? The cursed house? That house?"

"Ron! Chill!" Kim admonished.

"See Kim, I told you so! A Haunted house! Five hundred miles of bad road!"

Kim could see that Ron was rapidly approaching freak out mode and took steps to calm him down. She got up from her chair and turned to face him; dodging his rapidly flailing arms she gently cupped his face with her hands and began to stroke his cheeks with her thumbs while she looked into his frantic eyes.

"Ron," she began in a calm and soothing voice, "Chillax."

Ron looked into the calm, emerald eyes of his girlfriend and noticeably calmed down.

"You ok now?" She asked with concern in her voice.

"Yeah, sorry for the minor freak-out there KP" Ron responded, breathing out to relax himself.

Satisfied that her partner wasn't going to stroke out on her, Kim turned back to the monitor and sat back down to face Wade again.

'How sure are you of this Wade?"

"Well the location of your car does match the last reported sighting of the house. It also matches old survey records and land titles for the area."

"Can you give us a rundown on the legend, please and thank you?"

Kim placed her elbows on her computer desk and placed her chin in her hands. Ron, meanwhile, leaned in a bit closer to listen while beginning to massage her shoulders in a nervous gesture.

"Aaron Caruthers came out West in 1849 for the California gold rush. While in California; he struck it rich, not as a miner, but as a grocer and livery stable owner. He provided mining materials for hopeful prospectors, sold supplies to them; he even had a service to wash clothing for the residents in the town. He made a fortune at that until some of the grubstakes he took in lieu of payment suddenly started hitting high grade ore of gold, silver, and other metals.

He became one of the wealthiest men in the West at the time. He took his money and moved to San Francisco to live the good life. Now, according to newspaper accounts and his butler's personal journal, he began to live a lavish lifestyle. He spent millions on every conceivable luxury and indulgence..."

"Indulgence is that like ..." Ron trailed off his question.

"Doing whatever you want because you have the money and the influence to do it," Kim answered. "Now shush!"

"Right, well according to his butler, Aaron was having a great time spending his money, that is, until he contracted pneumonia and almost died because of it. That illness caused him to rethink his lifestyle completely. He cut out all of the extravagances, wild living and such. He devoted his still, vast fortune, to any and all kinds of medical research. That close brush with death instilled a fear of dying in him. He was becoming obsessed with any or all treatments or cure that would prolong his life, cheat death and gain eternal life.

The reports grow sketchy after that. He fired his butler, sold off all his assets and disappeared for years. Then in 1880 he reappears in the Colorado Territory. He buys twenty thousand acres of land, that will encompass all the future cities of Lowerton, Middleton, and Upperton by the way, and then he establishes a community of natives, settlers, trappers, and wanderers to which he promises a new order of things and eternal life to any who 'give up their concept of life and death to embrace the beginning of a new age.' According to reports he gathers a pretty large following for the population of the area, builds a compound and erects his house right in the middle of it. I even have a copy of the floor plan."

"How did you manage that?" Ron inquired.

"Well Colorado was pretty sparsely populated at that time. To build his compound and house Aaron Caruthers had to get help from Denver. The foreman of the project made a floor plan for himself which was published after they found the bodies."

"Who found the bodies Wade?" Kim asked.

"Some trappers were in the area and stopped by to sell or trade for supplies with the people in the compound. When they got there the gates were open and there were bodies everywhere. The strange thing about them was, according to the eyewitnesses, were all shriveled up and dried out like mummies. When the local law enforcement investigated they found bodies everywhere. They were unable to identify most of the corpses and they couldn't find Aaron Caruthers anywhere. The locals avoided the place for years. Years later someone claiming to be a descendent of Aaron Caruthers appeared, sold off most of the land, and refurbished the old house. He turned it into an orphanage and ran it for years. Then reports started filtering back to town of strange things happening out by the house. The local Sheriff investigated and found everyone dead, the bodies all shriveled up and dried out; just like the first time."

"When did the second round of deaths happen Wade?"

"The bodies were found on Saturday November 1, 1924 All Saints Day."

"So that means that they most likely died on..."

"...Friday October 31, 1924, All Hallows Eve, eighty four years ago next Friday." Wade finished the sentence for Kim.

Kim closed her eyes and leaned back as Ron continued to rub her tense shoulders. 'Too many questions and no answers to speak of.' Kim mused to herself.

"Kim there is something else about that house, rumors mostly."

"What's that Wade?"

"Well there are reports that the house can't normally be found where it's supposed to be."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Kim asked with a puzzled voice.

"After the first time, people went to see where all the people had died and nobody could find it. After the second time the Sheriff who investigated the deaths went back to gather more evidence and couldn't find the house."

"Did he know the area well?"

"Born and raised around here." Wade answered.

"So to summarize: we may or may not have a house that is over a hundred years old, that people may or may not be able to find, that a lot of people may have died in?"

"Pretty much, there are also some pretty strange stories regarding the area the house is supposed to be in."

"More than disappearing houses and massive amounts of dead bodies weird?" Ron chimed in.

"Much weirder Ron, there is a lot of mystical rumors about that area. People disappearing, strange lights reported and a rumor that that area is supposed to have a massive concentration of Ley lines."

"Ley lines? What's that?" Kim inquired.

"Ley lines are lines of 'supposed' magical power that connect holy area's or places of power." Ron answered, much to the surprise of both Kim and Wade.

"Should I ask how you know that?" Kim inquired with a raised eyebrow.

"'Stories of the Unknown', the Knowing Channel." Ron replied with a trace of smugness.

"Ron's right," Wade confirmed. "According to various theories I have read on the 'net anyway."

"What's your take on this Wade?"

"Kim this is magic we are talking about. I'm not too sure about the whole mystical magic thing."

"And yet I'm getting a ferociously good shoulder massage by a mystical monkey master." Kim responded to Wade while leaning back to enjoy Ron's personal attention he was giving her tense muscles.

"Believe me Kim; the idea that Ron has control over any magic at all is odd. The fact that I can't explain it is frustrating".

"Hey I'm unexplainable to a super genius. The Ronman is unique!"

"You have always been unique to me Ron." Kim sighed as she leaned into the relaxing shoulder rub he was giving her.

"And pretty much unexplainable to everybody." Wade chimed in.

Ron ignored the reply from Wade as he continued working the tense muscle knots out of his GF's shoulders.

Ron was not fooled by Kim's increasingly relaxed posture. Years of friendship gave him a unique perspective on her behavior and he had a bad feeling about what Kim was planning.

"Kim you're not going back to that house tonight are you?"

"Of course not Ron." Kim replied. "It's too late today and we have a game Friday. We'll go Saturday."

Ron stopped his massage long enough to regard his GF's face as it was reflected in the monitor before her. He saw her eyes open, intent, and focused on the goal she saw ahead of her. He had seen that look too many times on too many missions not to know it now. Kim had set her mind to solving this mystery and there would be no way he could talk her out of it.

"Bad Road." Ron murmured, "Five hundred miles of very bad road."

Wade's voice cut through Ron's ruminations and he began to focus on the young genius' words again

"... there are more legends and rumors about that place and area than you can ever guess. The rumors of buried treasure and a fortune in jewels that were never recovered drove a lot of people to find that house. Nobody ever could despite several written articles that had the location pretty well documented."

"I'm telling you KP, bad idea going back to the haunted house."

"Relax Ron; we're going back in the daylight. We should be safe."

"I hope that doesn't come under the 'famous last words' thingy.

Kim reached back and grabbed Ron's hands, which were still resting on her shoulders.

"We'll be fine Ron. What are the odds that anything will happen to us?

"Never anger the odds Kim." Ron replied darkly as he looked out of Kim's attic window into the deepening night.

On a hilltop outside of town, two figures stood. One, an older woman with round glasses, the other a young child, stood patiently. The child glanced at the older woman and a flash of red gleamed at the base of her neck, revealing a jewel-like stone hanging from a chain.

The height of the hill allowed them to see the city of Middleton, spread out before them. This was lookout point, a favorite of teenagers for years for its isolation from prying eyes and parental restraint.

The pair turned to the North East as a green flash momentarily lit up the night sky. They were not able to see the other four flashes that had occurred at the same time but, they knew it had happened. A myriad of lines flashed briefly, a deep violet color against the dark background. Then the color lightened and began to glow a lighter blue, then to pulsate, as if in response to a great heart. The lines seemed to throb with an unnatural energy, pulsating and twisting along its path; all of then centering on a deserted house, in the middle of a dead clearing, surrounded by a twisted glen.

Kim Possible tossed and turned in a restless, fitful slumber, dark images flittered across her subconscious mind; disturbing visions driven by unseen forces invaded the teen hero's sleep. Shadows lengthen, twist and dance within her bedroom, dark patches of nightmare separated from the night, shadow fingers stretch forward seeking the warmth of the young woman before them. Just before contact, their potential victim's eyes snap open, her normal emerald eyes glow a soft azure blue that strengthen until the whole room was bathed in the radiance. The shadows retreat, driven out by the light, their wordless cries of pain echoing into the night, her eyes close slowly, she relaxes and drops off into a normal, restful sleep.

Two blocks away Ron Stoppable sleeps, his dreams undisturbed and untroubled by dark visions of past events. His bedroom filled with an azure light. Rufus levitates just above his human's bed, his small body in the Lotus Position, eyes open and filled with the light of the Mystical Monkey Power. He stands guard over his humans from the danger he sensed earlier.

On the hilltop, not far from where Kim and Ron have spent some quality time together, the old woman smiles. Kim's sleep deepens; no more dark visions intrude into her rest, and Ron's eyes slowly change from deep blue to chocolate brown. Satisfied Rufus drops his guard and curls up next to his human. A last check reveals no danger and he drops off into a restless sleep; haunted by dreams and omens that no mole rat has ever experienced.

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A/N; Yeah I know not much action unless you count Kim getting a shoulder rub from Ron but I had to explain the house and its history. It get better next chapter I swear!


	3. Evil Tidings

The all purpose disclaimer: I own nothing except the idea, Disney owns the characters and settings (for the most part)

I'm accepting renters for the Caruthers house if you're interested.

I want to thank all those who reviewed the last chapter:** CajunBear73, Shrike176, Soth11, Comet Moon, Michael Howard, Samurai Crunchbird **and** kim's1fan. **

A big shout out to the all purpose **CajunBear73** for his mad beta skills, his advice, and his willing to be the voice of reason when I wanted to do something else and he convinced me not to. It's all good.

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The house stood in the middle of a dead clearing. The summer grass had long since gone to the brittle brown remains that heralded the coming of winter. No tangles of thorns or moss covered remains, or anything that they expected in the vicinity of the Victorian house, almost a mansion, which stood before them. The house seemed to hunch upon itself, there in the middle of that clearing filled with the dead and decaying vegetation of seasons past. They could almost feel waves of discord and disharmony radiate from it; almost as if it was sending out vibrations that destroyed or warped anything nearby.

Kim studied the house carefully as they approached it. The two story house had an open air of menace about it. The low overhanging gables reminded her of eyebrows drawn up in displeasure, scowling. The windows under them resembled dark fathomless eyes, devoid of soul, staring at her with an open hostility; hinting of dark thing that crawled in the night; dreams turned into nightmares.

Over all the house had a leprotic look about it as if some wasting disease had robbed it of it vitality, a decaying skeleton, mummified remains of past events caught up in the very structure of the house itself. When they stepped on the wide porch Kim almost thought the house screamed at them.

Kim turned toward Ron; knowing how much this place was affecting her she almost expected him to run as soon as they got close to it. To her surprise he appeared tense but, alert, and very much in control of himself. Kim could see the strain in his body language and knew he was keeping himself under control just for her. He half turned to her and she could see the mixture of fear and resolve in his face.

At this moment in time Kim was never prouder of her boyfriend then right now. She knew he was terrified almost out of his wits but he was willing to go into this sitch just for her and her safety. On impulse she grabbed him, pulled him over closer to her and kissed him on the cheek.

Ron looked surprised as asked. "What was that for? Not that I'm complaining or anything."

"Just because," Kim replied with a smile. "just because."

Team Possible walked into the house and a cold shiver ran down both teens' spines. Even the decay and desolation of the outside was warm and friendly compared to what lay within. Cobwebs were everywhere. The miasma of desolation was ever-present and hung, like a pall over the interior. There was a subtle smell of rot that clung to the air and caused both of them to cough and wheeze. The ever present dust was thick and when they walked through it formed a cloud around them further worsening their breathing problems and caused their eyes to water as well.

Strange shapes lurked in the corners. Forgotten pieces of furniture were draped haphazardly with rotting fabric. The windows were once hidden behind heavy drapes but time had done its job on the elaborate fabrics; puddles of severed material pooled on the floor in unlikely resting places, forever discarded.

The dust on the carpet obscured the pattern that had been woven in. Kim glanced behind them; their footsteps had disturbed the dust occasionally reveling the pattern. The brief glances of disturbing images made her glad that she couldn't see well and she reverently hoped that Ron didn't understand what symbols had been briefly uncovered. The high narrow windows, even uncovered, gave little light. They were covered by a black substance that gave what little light there was a reddish tint. The pale colored walls combined with the weak October sunlight streaming through the black substance gave the impression that the room and they were covered in blood.

"KP?"

'Yeah Ron?'

"I think I saw this room on 'lifestyles of the Dead and Creepy'. Good try for the world's ugliest room however." Ron quipped.

Kim was about to reply when a sudden movement caught her eye. She scanned the room as she turned but saw nothing moving. She started to turn back to Ron only to catch a flash of movement out of the corner of her eye. Again and again it would happen a sudden flash, hinting at movement, but gone when directly looked at.

Ron was having his own problems, he kept hearing children's' voices; small parts of conversations that seemed to last only seconds, sounds that would stop if he turned his full attention to them.

They began a systematic search of the first floor all the rooms were checked as well as possible. They found nothing but dust, decay, and the ever present smell of corruption the permeated the house.

Going back to the main entrance Ron glanced up at the main staircase that lead to the second floor. Just as he was about to ask Kim if they should search it, movement caught his eye. Looking up he spotted a small form running away from the top of the steps.

"KP look somebody's here." Ron shouted has he ran up the steps. "It looks like a small child."

Kim turned at Ron's shout and started up the steps behind him shouting.

"Ron hold up! Let's not get separated!"

Ron ignored Kim as he ran up the stairs and turned to his left, spying movement along the hallway. Running quickly in that direction he came to a door that was ajar. Ron ran into the room to find blackness, an overpowering feel of nothingness. He turned back to the door only to find it gone. Then the sounds came. It began as a low chitterling noise that grew louder as it drew closer. Then he recognized the sound as the shuffling of feet, many feet, coming toward him; then a light appeared, small and indistinct at first, as if from a great distance, then it brightened just enough so that Ron wasn't in total blackness anymore.

The forms appeared next small indistinct shapes that took the form of small children as they drew near. There were too many to count wavering images of children of all ages with palled faces, clothed in rags that hung listlessly from wasted frames. Their eyes were the worst: dark, with a pleading, despairing look that told of unimaginable suffering and torment; the eyes of the damned. Then new figures appeared in his field of sight. Older men and women, dressed in clothing Ron had seen only in brief glances in his history textbooks; the styles ranged from homespun cotton to buckskins to the tattered remains of cast off clothing. All of them, young and old alike, had blank expressions, the same look of spirits trapped within a place of torment.

Ron regarded the silent spectral visitors that surrounded him when a small child stepped in front of the silent mass of apparitions. She was a small child no more than ten or twelve years old. She was dressed in a shapeless dress that had seen too much wear. Around her neck a glittering red jewel hung, suspended around her neck on a delicate chain. She looked at Ron and he realized that her eyes didn't have that dead, lifeless look in them. Her eyes were alive with focus and intent; she looked at him for a minute and finally spoke.

"They have been awaiting your coming for a long time Ron Stoppable. You are their last hope. The cycle threatens to begin again and more will suffer this fate unless it is stopped now!"

There came a pounding from behind them that made both of them turn around and glance in the same direction.

"Miss Possible is very upset with you Ronald." The girl then started to chant in a sing-song voice. "You're gonna get in trouble." In the same voice that Jim and Tim used to tweak both him and Kim from time to time.

A bright light blossomed behind the child; it grew brighter until Ron had to raise his arm to shield his darkness-adjusted eyes from the glare. Then Ron wished he couldn't see what was coming out of the light; feral creatures of every shape and size, monstrous creations, a mockery of all things living. There were things of nightmare, born of a madman's twisted dreams, slithering crawling and lumbering toward them. The silent circle that surrounded Ron gave forth a wail that drove deep into Ron's soul. A cry of lament from the damned bound to an unholy plane issued from the group. Then they began to dissipate, bodies that became mist that gathered in a great vortex of sound and fury with Ron in the middle. The creatures fell back and retreated into the light that they came from. Then the circle protecting Ron vanished, leaving not a trace of its presence behind.

The door finally gave way to Kim's assault on it and opened into the room. There she found Ron in a defensive position with the Lotus Blade in front of him, his eyes glowed a blue almost black and he muttered over and over:

"Bad road, very bad road....."

Ron sat in the front seat of the Sloth with his head hung low trying to get his breath back. Kim regarded her BF from her kneeling position beside him as she stroked his back in an effort to calm him down.

Ron, still breathless, from his mad dash out of the house and to Kim's car tried to speak between ragged breaths.

"I'm telling you...KP......I saw......something......."

Kim had listened to Ron's story with some disbelief until he mentioned the girl. From his description it was the same one she had met on the side of the road a few days ago.

"Ok Ron, just what did you see again?"

"I told you Kim ghosts, spirits whatever you want to call them. They were looking at me with the emptiest eyes I have ever seen!"

"What did the girl say to you again?"

"That I'm their last hope. What does that mean?"

"I don't know Ron, I wish I did." Kim was still s trying to soothe Ron when she looked up and saw a face staring at them from beyond the clearing on the opposite side of where they were parked.

Kim jumped up and shouted. "Hey, who are you?"

At Kim's shout the figure stood up and bolted into the surrounding woods with Kim in hot pursuit seconds later. Over and under branches and through thickets the figure dodged and weaved its course with Kim right behind him. Kim saw a clearing up ahead and put on a burst of speed to catch up. She made a flying tackle that would have made Ron proud and caught her quarry just as they reached the clearing.

Kim regarded her captive with a critical eye as he cowered before her.

He was a mess, dressed in bits of cast-off clothing that hadn't been washed in some time. And he smelled appallingly as if soap and water were somehow hurtful to him. His body odor, combined with the smell of his unwashed clothing made her glad she hadn't held on to him too long. But it was his face that captured her attention. Under the stubble and filth was the face of a child, screwed up in fright at what might happen to him. A frightened infant that had no idea what was about to happen to him and was confused by what had happened. His wide frightened eyes regarded her with terror. A frightened bleat came out of his mouth, filled with rotting teeth and foul breath.

"Waugh! Waugh!"

Kim came to the quick conclusion that the person she had been chasing didn't know anything and probably never would. He was mentally challenged and she had scared the living daylights out of him.

"Excuse me would you please get off old Paul? He's harmless I assure you."

This statement came from behind her. She looked up and was surprised to see the old woman she had seen days ago with the young girl. When the man saw the older woman he gave a frightened bleat and scurried over to hide behind her.

Kim regarded her with a wary eye. She was dressed much like she had been when Kim had seen her the first time. An old faded dress, hair done up in a bun and some rounded glasses that perched on her nose; like some exotic bird ready to take flight. Her clear blue eyes studied Kim with some amusement and something else Kim couldn't quite put her finger on. It was as if she knew a great secret that she wished to share, but was uncertain of the reception the news would bring. She seemed to radiate that feeling of warmth and gentle understanding that is the hallmark of kindly grandmothers everywhere. Kim was, in turns, puzzled why she would be out here and mystified to her connection to the decidedly odd person crouching behind her.

"We should wait for your young man, and then we can go to my cottage for a spell."

Kim was about to ask her a question when Ron crashed through the underbrush and stopped when he saw Kim.

Breathlessly he gasped "Kim...... Where.........going...?"

Kim went over to Ron and gently laid her hand on his back as he hunched over gasping for his breath.

"Ron, you OK?"

"Yeah.....sure..... Let......catch......breath." Ron wheezed.

As Ron paused to catch his breath, Kim watched the old woman turn around and walk deeper into the clearing without a backward glance at the two teens.

Kim helped Ron to his feet and followed the path the departing couple had made. The two teens walked for a short time when they came upon a small cottage, then followed the odd couple into the cottage. The inside could only be called 'homey' everything put away and spotless. A fire burned in the fireplace with comfortable chairs arranged around it.

"Please sit. I believe you may have several questions about that house. I have some answers that you will need if you want to survive anymore future contact with that cursed place."

"Cursed..." Ron began

"We had a briefing on the history of this area by another member of our team." Kim replied.

"I doubt that you tech wizard would know the information I will tell you." The old woman answered primly.

"How do you know about..." Kim began, but was cut off by Ron.

"What's you name anyway?" Ron blurted out.

"You may call me Granny McDonald, young Ronald."

During this conversation the older woman was keeping herself busy in the small kitchen preparing tea. She put the kettle on a hook over the fire. She then sat down and started speaking to the two confused teens; all the while placing a calming hand on the head of the strange man she called 'Old Paul'.

"I suppose that you know the general history of the house and the tales that surround it. I won't go into them. What I have to tell you is far more important and far less known by anyone but me and a few others."

"When Aaron Caruthers left San Francisco in 1865 He was on a quest to extend his life by what ever means he could find. That nasty bout of pneumonia instilled in him a great fear of dying. He wandered for years looking for any clue that might help him succeed with his goal. Some time in the 1870's he stumbled upon a scroll that told of a way to achieve his goal. He tracked down all the information that he could and prepared himself for the ritual described."

"One night he managed to call up a being of power, what you would call a demon, and made a deal with it. For every person he sacrificed he would gain an extended life. He went to a large town and kidnapped a small child for his first sacrifice. He reasoned that if he picked a child that the longer lifespan he would receive would keep him from doing it very often. After the deed was done the demon informed him that he would receive one year of extended life for whomever he sacrificed. He had intended to do the ceremony only when he had too, now he had to do it almost constantly. "

"He came to Colorado in 1880 to build a house and implement his plan. He reasoned if he could sacrifice a large number of people in an under populated area, like this state was at that time, he had a reasonable chance of getting away with it. He used his, still vast fortune, to lure people to this area and to his compound. After he did the deed, he then used the powers of his demon familiar to twist the house out of time. To make it unreachable by any method until the master of the house needed to fuel his unquenchable desire to feed upon the life source of others to extend its own evil life."

"Forty four years later, when its master needed to feed again, the house re-appeared. This time it was expanded upon and converted to an orphanage. His next set of victims would be the children that were accepted into the house along with all the social workers and clerical people that were employed there.

Eighty four people died that night to fuel his desire to live forever."

"Now the house has appeared again. Its owner needs to feed again on the life source of others to extend its own unnatural life. "Granny McDonald concluded.

"How does he plan to do this?" Kim asked with a skeptical tone in her voice.

"The present cities of Upperton, Lowerton and Middleton all are within the original boundaries of his old land holdings. He planted several jewels of mystical power at five equidistant points at the extreme edge of his original acreage. He plans to activate the jewels and connect them mystically with the major Ley Lines that all connect to the exact center of his property; where he built his house and where he carries out his obscene rituals. When he summons up his demon familiar and starts the ritual he plans to drain the life-force of everybody in the Tri-Cities area; over 300,000 people. And he plans to do it on Halloween night. If you can't stop him from completing his plans everybody in the immediate area will be dead by November 1st. "

"So, can we find these jewels?" Ron asked.

"No they cannot be found by anyone except, the one who placed them."

"Can we just, maybe, burn the house down?" Ron wondered out loud.

The house is protected until the pact with the familiar is broken. The only may to stop the cycle is to disrupt the ceremony itself."

"How do we do that?" Ron asked, certain he wasn't going to like the answer.

"The ceremony needs a trigger or focus for it to work. An innocent must be sacrificed first to bind the spell and lock the transfer. Then the life exchange is completed; a monster lives and everyone else dies."

"An innocent?" Kim questioned.

"Someone pure in both thought and spirit, find that one person and guard them, there can be only one, for they are the key to stopping this tragedy from continuing."

Granny McDonald stopped and regarded her visitor with knowing eyes. She could almost feel the waves of disbelief radiating from the young woman; only she was too polite to say anything about her skepticism of the story she had just revealed to the both of them.

"I see your doubt, child of the electron, you do not want to believe me or take my warnings seriously. That will change when you see the signs."

"What signs?" Kim asked with mistrust.

"People will develop an aversion to travel too far from their homes. Old habits will be disrupted, people who normally don't stay here for the colder months will suddenly, want to change their plans. He will want as many people around here as he can manage to hold."

The older woman looked out the window.

"It's getting late and you will want to return home before dark. These woods are not safe at night anymore. I will escort you back to your vehicle now. I have no desire to be out late myself."

Driving back to her house Kim pondered what Granny McDonald had said. She had a hard time believing in mystical magic stuff, Ron's abilities not withstanding, she would need a lot of further evidence to convince her of what the older woman had said was true. She would keep calm and try to keep Ron from jumping at shadows. She glanced over to her BF, noting the far away look in his eyes, and smiled at him. She saw him relax and look at her with a trusting look in his eyes. Everything world be alright, the look he gave said to her. As long as she was here; everything would be fine. Kim hoped his trust in her wasn't misplaced.

---

The week progressed and Kim was becoming more concerned as Granny McDonald's prediction seemed to be become reality. All around town people were suddenly canceling long made plans of travel to stay close to home. The older population, who usually left Colorado for the warmer climates of Arizona, New Mexico, and Southern California for the winter, suddenly deciding to stay the winter, put her on alert. The comment, "We just don't feel like traveling this year" was heard around town as friends inquired about radical changes in behavior.

Kim's unease grew as the week went on. There were just too many odd occurrences that were happening for her to simply dismiss the strange behaviors as chance. What was really, well ok, spooky was the way Ron was reacting to the whole sitch. He was unusually calmed, solemn, quiet, and extremely thoughtful to her the whole week. His never-be-normal behavior was still there but, muted somehow, she couldn't puzzle it out.

**October 31 Halloween **

Kim was ecstatic at the end of the night. Middleton had defeated the Easton Eagles in the last regular season game of the season. The win had qualified the Mad Dogs for the playoffs and Ron had been a one man wrecking crew. He had rushed for three touchdowns and had caught passes for two other scores. Kim was meeting him at her house after the game to celebrate the win and to indulge in some post game cuddling with her BF.

Kim sat by the phone fidgeting; it was 10:00 P.M. and Ron had yet to show up. She debated with herself about calling him and then picked up the phone. She was just about to dial Ron's number when the phone went off in her hand, causing her to jump with a nervous reaction.

"Hello?"

"Kim is Ron there?" Ron's mother asked in a worried voice.

"No, I have been waiting for him to call....wait....he hasn't been home from the game yet?"

"No, I thought he went home with you. Haven't you seen him at all?"

"No, not since the game." Kim answered with a worried tone developing in her voice. "Don't worry Mrs. Stoppable; I'll get on it right away."

"Thank you Kimberly, I hope nothing has happened to him. He's usually so considerate about checking in with us before he goes over to your house." The worried tone of Ron's mom echoed within Kim's mind as she hung up the phone.

She pulled out her Kimmunicator and signaled Wade.

"What's up Kim?" Wade asked as his image appeared on the small screen.

"Wade I need a lock on Ron's chip fast!"

"Kim you, yourself, told me to deactivate that chip months ago." Wade protested.

"Did you?"

"Well No." Wade confessed.

"Then give me a signal lock, like now! He hasn't been seen since the game."

"Ok. Ok, locking onto signal, G.P.S. lock confirmed. Kim! His chip says he's at the location of the Caruthers House

---

Ron awoke to a splitting headache, a foul taste in his mouth, and tied, spread-eagled, on a cool metal table. The one thing that made this sitch different for the other times he had woken in this position he always had Kim nearby to call for help, and he usually had an a idea who had tied him up; plus he was missing his shirt. He wrinkled his nose as a semi-familiar smell hit him; he wondered where he had encountered that smell before. Then it came to him, the haunted house! How did he get here anyway? The last thing he vaguely remembered was showering after the game, dressing, and leaving the locker room. He recalled being in a hurry to go home and tell his mom that he would be at Kim's house until late. Ron wrinkled his brow as he struggled to remember, someone..... coming up to him.......wanting to shake his hand....... then nothing.

He tried to raise his head to look around and discovered it was secured; he had very little capability to move his head. He tried his bonds to find them very secure and with little or no slack in them. Ron stared at the ceiling for what seemed forever and wondered at the source of light in the room. What he could see, everything was illuminated by a gentle glow, like it was cast by a lot of candles just out of his line of sight.

Ron's musings were interrupted by a figure walking up to stand by the table he was strapped on. The figure was backlit so Ron couldn't see his face. Then the figure spoke.

"Welcome Mr. Stoppable. It's been quite awhile since our last meeting hasn't it?"

Ron stared at the figure until it moved and its face was suddenly lit by the glow all around them.

Ron gasped as he recognized the face before him. "You?"

---

Kim was upstairs changing into her mission clothing when she heard a scratching sound at her window. She went to investigate, looking down, she saw a very agitated Rufus trying to get her attention. Kim opened the window and the naked mole rat practically flew to Kim's shoulder; chittering loudly.

"I know Rufus, Ron's in trouble." Kim said as she tried to calm him down. "Don't worry we'll go rescue him."

Kim gathered her gear and ran downstairs to her car and then roared off into the night.

Ron regarded the sitch he was in and the man who was doing unrecognizable things just somewhere out of his field of vision.

'Care to tell me what's going on dude? Why am I tied down to this table with no shirt on? I mean if you wanted to admire my pecs. I could just send you a picture and all."

The man answered from the shadows.

"Still with the unusual sense of humor I see. You are here, Ronald, because I desire something from you, a service if you will. You like helping people don't you?"

"Well KP and I do the 'Save the world thing' from time to time......" Ron trailed off.

"Precisely," The man replied. "I just want you to save my world for me, that's all."

"Well KP and I are always ready to help people. Just let me go and I'll get her and we can help you. How's that sound?"

"You can help me just fine from your present position Ronald, just fine indeed. I can see you are wondering why you are in this, sitch, I believe you and Kimberly call it. We have time until conditions are right so let me tell you a story...."

"Say Mr. ....." Ron began until he was interrupted.

"That's not n my real name Ronald, just a handy alias I happened to adopt. My real name is Aaron Caruthers."

"Aren't you supposed to be dead? I mean according to the information Wade dug up you should be like, a hundred and fifty years old by now."

"I'm one hundred and seventy- seven years old actually."

"Dude you don't look a day over eighty, tops." Ron replied

Aaron smiled down at the restrained hero.

"I was born in 1831 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. I came out went in 1849 to seek my fortune during the California gold rush...."

"Wade already told us this, got rich, got sick, and got scared of dying, yadda, yadda. yadda...."

Aaron smiled a tight little smile and continued.

"Did he tell you what happened after that?"

"The details got sketchy after that." Ron admitted, struggling to find some slack in his restraints. "I suppose that you are going to tell me aren't you?"

"Indeed I will. It all started when I made my fortune and moved to San Francisco. Now that was an exciting time. I was living the good life I had always dreamed about....."

Ron began to tune the guy out after awhile. _What is it about villains that make them rant at the drop of a hat? _

Ron tried again to get some slack in the straps that held him down tightly.

_Come on Ron you got to get free somehow. I have the feeling that whatever this nut has planned for the Ronster can't be good. Kim where are you?_

_---_

Kim parked the Sloth as close to the house as she could and began to make her way through the woods. The darkness was almost absolute; her flashlight didn't pierce the gloom more than a few feet. She ran as quickly as she could, guided by her memory and the unshakable belief that Ron was in trouble and needed her help.

Kim ran for awhile then suddenly stopped, warned by some instinct to get off the path and turn off her light. She waited for a few seconds and her caution was rewarded when a lumbering shape moved onto the path out of the darkness. Kim hoped that whatever it was it would pass her by but, it stopped and looked directly at her through the inky blackness of the night that surrounded her.

Kim turned the light on hoping the sudden light would blind it, and wished she hadn't.

A nightmare stood before her. A large misshapen body with a tiny, almost human like head, perched on top of it. Fangs, easily six inches long, protruded from its upper jaw. Eyes that took up half of the improbably small head were a blood red in color and regarded her with malice. It had huge misshapen arms and legs that were out of proportion to each other and knotted with corded muscles. It was if the thing in front of her had been hurriedly put together with spare parts that didn't match.

The huge arms reached out to grab her. It moved far faster than its lumbering form suggested and Kim ducked hurriedly out of the way. She dropped into a defensive crouch and hit the beast with a quick left jab to the face, followed by a roundhouse with all her forward momentum behind it to the side of its head. The creature 's head snapped back slightly and then it regarded her with an impassive look until it roared a challenge of rage and shock, then charged straight at her. Kim ran straight it the creature and then leapt up and placed her hands on it shoulders as she flipped over it to land behind the monster. She then landed on her hands and kicked out with both feet to strike at the back of the creatures knees. The sudden impact caused the thing's knees to buckle, sending it down and allowing it to land on its knees. Kim again, took the offensive, as she delivered a kick to the back of the creatures head; causing it to fall forward on its face.

Kim then followed up with a kick to the head that would have made the place kicker on the football team green with envy. Kim then danced back from the thing laying before her, hoping it was down for the count. That hope proved to be in vain as the creature let loose with a growl and heaved its grotesque body up on its feet again and wildly charged the young woman again. As it charged it swept out it long arms; trying to catch its elusive prey and crush the life out of the small thing that had hurt it. Kim, using her quick reflexes and athletic ability, along with her sixteen forms of kung-fu, dodged the creature's mad rushes all the while landing blow after blow upon the freakish thing that was wildly charging about trying to catch her. The creature grew more enraged and tried charge after charge that Kim nimbly avoided, all the while the creature was trying to drive her from the relative safety of the path and into the darkness that surrounded it.

Kim faked a charge to the right and when the creature moved to intercept her, she charged straight at it. Stepping into the creature's long reach Kim delivered a vicious sweeping roundhouse punch that connected with the creature's jaw snapping his head suddenly to the side then she delivered a equally hard punch to the other side of its jaw snapping its head back the other way. Kim followed that up with a monstrous two handed uppercut to the underside of its jaw; the impact throwing its head back. Then Kim followed up with a spin kick that should have taken the ugly things gross head right off its body. The creature fell momentarily stunned but started to raise again, the look of rage it threw at Kim increasing with every second.

She was getting concerned; she was tired and even with her gloves on, punching that thing was like hitting concrete! She was worried that eventually she would wear herself out beating on it, and then it would be all over for her. Kim readied herself for one more attack and ran to the creature that bellowed its rages and began to run just as fast toward her. Kim then jumped forward, landed on her hands, and kicked forward with all her might right on target for the things jaw. Both feet impacted with a satisfying crunch on the thing's face; the force of the kick flipping it backward into the darkness. It fell and Kim heard a crash and then a sound that sounded like a banshee announcing the early death of a loved one.

Getting up Kim carefully walked forward until she was at the edge of large pit that had been freshly dug and then covered with vegetation to blend perfectly with the forest floor. Down in the pit the creature was struggling and emitting some of the most ear splitting shrieks and moans that Kim had ever heard. Kim looked closer and, to her horror, saw the bottom of the pit had been lined with sharp stakes and that her opponent was impaled on them. What added to her horror was the sudden thought that the thing had been herding her in this direction to drop her into that death trap.

Kim watched the creature struggle to get itself off the spikes and regarded the path once again. She would have to be more careful than before following it. Whoever was running the show around here was playing for high stakes, and didn't mind murdering people to achieve it.

Kim tangled with three more of those constructs and managed to avoid four more traps before she got to the house. She scouted the land carefully before running, bent almost double, across the open space to her destination. Kim regarded the house with a wary eye. It seemed to glow with reddish light; there were lines of softly glowing red that led to the house as they pulsed and twisted with unknown energy. She crouched on the porch and opened the door slowly then walked in when nothing appeared to bar her way. She stood in the entrance way, in front of the grand staircase, trying to decide which way to go when Rufus popped out of her pocket with eyes that glowed so blue they were almost black. He jumped out of the pocket and ran across the room and into the kitchen, and then he ran through an open door and was lost from sight. Kim followed him without question as he ran down some stone steps and stopped at the bottom to wait for her.

Kim paused at the bottom of the stairs to regard her surroundings carefully. She found herself in a stone lined chamber, softly lit by hundreds of candles that gave a cheery glow to the place; so very much in contrast to what Kim saw next as she shifted her position for a better look and cover.

Ron was strapped, spread-eagle, on a table. A man was standing next to him the faint sounds of conversation echoing softly in the room. Kim shifted her position for a better look and gasped as she recognized the man who was holding a dagger in one hand while doing something to Ron's chest with the other; all the while talking in a slow even voice.

"What is HE doing here?" Kim wondered.

".....and so Ronald the drama comes to an end. By sacrificing you, one who is 'pure in spirit' I shall achieve my greatest wish; to cheat death itself! The gems I planted at the boundaries of my old property have been activated and the life forces of every living thing in the Tri-Cities area will be mine! Your death will seal the life forces within me, granting me eternal life!"

Kim expected a Ronnish comment over that statement but her BF was strangely silent.

_Has he drugged him? _Kim wondered

Kim gathered herself to lunge at the man when she felt herself grabbed by unseen hands and lifted into the air, dangling in full view of the occupants of the chamber.

"Hello Kimberly Ann." The man smiled, "You find cuddlers in the most unusual places don't you?"

"Just what is your damage Mr. Paisley? Why are you going to kill Ron?"

Jonas Paisley smiled that pleasant grandfather smile of his that Kim remembered from the first time she met him; clutching his Flamingoat after she had turned off the McHenry laser grid.

"That wasn't a typo you know." Paisley explained to Kim. "I influenced Mr. McHenry to type you web address. I wanted to judge myself who was worthy to be sacrificed. I needed a person pure in spirit and uncorrupted by the world. Your Ronald is still filled with child like wonder; the perfect choice."

Kim struggled with her invisible bonds.

"What did you do, drug him?"

"To get him here yes, I doubt he would have come willingly to his death after all. But not recently, perhaps he fainted. He's not the bravest person on the planet you know."

"Ron's a lot braver than you think!"

"Ah yes, defending you lover. Well he doesn't have to be awake for this to work my dear; just alive."

"You would kill everybody in three cities just to keep from dying?" Kim asked with disbelief in her voice.

"Oh much more than that, Miss Possible, much more."

"You're pathetic, you know that?"

"Perhaps Miss Possible perhaps, but I shall still be alive in a few moments; which won't be the case for you or your friends and families."

Paisley then began to chant and make several cuts along Ron's shoulders and stomach as he did so. He closed his eyes an increased the volume and tempo of his chanting. The room grew darker as the volume rose and the room was soon bathed in the subtle red glow that had covered the outside of the house. Then the temperature began to drop it, got so cold that Kim's teeth began to chatter. A deeper red glow formed around Paisley and Ron's bodies the light turning a blood red that bathed everything in a sickly glow that resembled blood.

Kim felt herself growing tired, confused, and unable to concentrate. She knew that her life force was being drained away like everybody in the Tri-Cities area. She hung loosely in her invisible bonds, all thoughts dwelling upon her impending death.

_Mom, dad, tweebs, I never said I love you as much as I should have. Ron, we never got to share the rest of our lives like we wanted to.... Ron I love ......."_

Kim last thoughts passed freely through her as she succumbed to the draining force of Paisley's spell.

The red glow deepened again as the ceremony reached the apex of the spell. The chamber was bathed in the rich red glow as the temperature dropped even further. Everything, with the exception of Paisley and Ron, were starting to get covered with a thin layer of frost.

Kim's red hair was now streaked with frost; giving her a much older appearance. The ceremony progressed and her vibrant red hair lost its luster and started changing from red to grey to white. Fine lines appeared on young cheeks which turned into wrinkles. Her young body lost it tone and started to sag and hunch up in a preview of what she would look like as she had aged naturally. Her gums receded from her teeth; the vibrancy of youth was being drained from her body. She was slowly transforming into the mummified remains that were found when this ghastly ceremony reached its horrifying conclusion.

Paisley chanted the ritual words; he could feel the stolen life forces flood his body; filling him with life and vitality. He altered his pitch slightly, reaching the final stanza. His timing must be perfect, everything had to be completed at the proper time, and all parts must align perfectly.

He reached the crescendo of the ceremony and raised the dagger in his hands higher preparing to start the killing stroke that would ensure his continued existence and end the life of the sacrifice. His hand moved in the stroke gaining force as it traveled the distance from the apex of is flight to it destination. The dagger traveled the arc downward with all of his strength behind the blow........

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A/N As I write this Ohio State is crushing Michigan! Go Buckeyes!


	4. Things that go bump in the night

Chapter 4

Things that go bump in the night

The all propose Disclaimer: Disney owns Kim Possible and it still vexes me so! I own Abigail, Aaron, Granny Mc Donald and Old Paul, The Caruthers house is up for sale for back taxes; compound interest is murder!

I wish to thank all those who reviewed the last chapter: CajunBear73, Soth11, Comet Moon, Michael Howard, daccu65, and Sentinel 103.

The big shout out for CajunBear73 for his mad Beta skills, helpful insight, and timely interventions.

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His thrust was stopped by the arm of a freed Ron Stoppable; glowing with a blue aura that was almost black in its intensity. Ron looked up at his potential murderer with eyes of cobalt blue. He forced the dagger away from him and then kicked out and sent a stunned Paisley flying into the back wall.

An exhausted Rufus lay, off to one side of the table; worn out with the effort of chewing through Ron's restraints and resisting the terrible drain of life force from the ceremony.

Ron rose from his sacrificial altar and stood before his assailant. He gestured with his right hand and the Lotus Blade appeared in it.

"No!" Paisley screamed, "The timing must be perfect or else all is lost!"

He lunged toward Ron with the dagger held high but, Ron batted it away and grabbed the man by the throat.

"Hear me now, most evil of men!" Ron intoned in a sepulchral voice. "For the scope of your evil there can be no just punishment; therefore I will leave judgment to the ones you worked your evil on. So says the spirit of the Lotus Blade!"

The chamber was filled with the sound of a rushing wind that carried the cries of the countless victims of Aaron Caruthers. Around the two men there appeared the ghostly forms of every one of the sacrifices that he had made. The eyes of his dead looked upon him with contempt and accusation. Caruthers clawed at the hand restraining him, his panic rising by the second, he looked wildly at the faces of his sacrificed dead and could see no pity there.

"No!" He croaked, "Not now! Not when I 'm so close!"

Ron released the man to fall in a heap at his feet; and looked down upon him with eyes that had no trace of the warm, compassionate Ron Stoppable. Instead he gazed upon the face of justice itself; a cold, stern, judgment that offered no hope for him.

On the far end of the room, with the disruption of the ceremony, Kim's slack form had dropped to the stone floor and her stolen youth was returning to her at an accelerated rate. She opened her eyes in confusion as her scattered wits returned to her. She used a nearby table to hoist herself up, _why were her legs so weak? _She wondered. She then regarded the scene before her. Ron. Her Ron, was standing before Paisley with the Lotus Blade pointed at him; and he was glowing blue!

"_What's up with the glowing?" _Kim wondered.

She saw that both of them were surrounded by ghostly figures that seemed to shimmer and dance in some unfelt wind.

"_The ghosts Ron said he saw before I could get that door opened." _

Kim was about to call out to Ron when a figure appeared next to Ron. It was Granny McDonald, looking sad, grim and triumphant all at the same time.

"You!" Paisley cried.

"Did you think that I had forgotten what you did? How you started this? "She demanded of the kneeling man.

With this statement, a small child appeared next to Granny McDonald. She was about ten years old, clad in a shapeless dress that had seen too much wear, with eyes that no child should have.

"You killed my Isabella to start this mad scheme of yours! Did you think that I would rest with justice unfulfilled?"

Kim was startled when she saw the young girl appear.

"_That's the girl I gave the ride home to. Isabella? But didn't she say her name was Abigail? And where's that red jewel she was wearing?_

Kim's eyes widened further as the man Granny called 'old Paul' appeared out of nowhere.

"_Where did he come from?" _ Kim wondered.

The man's body began to change and shimmer as if it emitted a great heat, then it started to grow taller and fill out; large wings grew from its back, the body became thicker and grotesque. The head grew large horns from its forehead and the bottom half of its body took on the shape of goats' legs. It grew so large that its head brushed the ceiling of the chamber. Kim looked on as what could only be described as a demon stood in front of her BF.

"Release my servant!" The creature commanded.

Ron turned glowing eyes on the creature and intoned, "You hold no sway here demon!"

Kim almost thought she saw the creature flinch when Ron turned his eyes upon it.

"I beg to differ." It replied. "I have prior claim on this human."

Ron looked down at the man huddled before him and smiled a cold smile.

"So be it! He is yours!" Ron stated as he stepped away from the man.

"Little man you have failed me! You promised me slaughter and deliver nothing in return for my favors to you."

"Master." The prostrate man croaked.

"Silence worm, for your failure your life is forfeit!"

Following that last statement the creature picked up the shaking man and threw him into the far wall where the body slid to the floor. The creature then swept the room with his eyes until they rested upon Kim.

"A tasty morsel" it intoned and started to reach for her until it found the Lotus Blade inches from its face.

'You would not survive to cross this chamber." Ron warned.

"It was, but a thought." It replied with a trace of a smile. Then bowed to Kim, stepped back, and disappeared in a stench of death; taking Paisley's body with him.

Ron walked over to Kim and put a supporting arm around her. She glanced up at him and saw calm in his face that she usually didn't, a peace and contentment to his posture that spoke to her of safety and protection. She knew that whatever had happened to him it was nothing she should fear.

Granny McDonald spoke, "Thank you, Team Possible, for justice for all those trapped souls."

"I did nothing it was Ron who did it all." Kim replied as she brushed off the thanks she felt she didn't earn.

The older woman just smiled and motioned Isabella over to her.

'Just who are you anyway?" Kim questioned?

"Isabella was the first one Caruthers sacrificed all those years ago. She was my granddaughter. I swore I would track down whoever had done this to my innocent child. I searched for her killer until the day I died."

"You're dead? But how......?" Kim stuttered.

"People who die without finishing a task may choose to wander the mortal plane until their task is complete; If their will is strong enough. I was able to track him through the years but I was unable to do anything to stop him; not until the ceremony. "

"The girl you were with the first time, you called her Abigail."

"Yes."

"Is she still the same girl?"

Granny McDonald only smiled and moved back to her granddaughter's spirit; the apparitions that had waited patiently for decades for justice; began to vanish, one by one, with whispered thanks to the two teens.

Ron staggered back and grabbed the table behind him

"Kim, I'm bleeding! Why am I bleeding?" Ron almost shouted.

Kim ran over to Ron and helped him to stand.

"Ron do you remember anything about what happened tonight?"

"I remember Paisley babbling about his life story and me wishing he would finish up already. Why? What did I miss?"

Kim smiled at him and wrapped her arms around her BF's neck and kissed him on the nose. "Only that I have the bravest BF on the planet." She gushed.

"Kim what did I miss? Not that I didn't like the compliment and all....."

Kim was about to answer him when the building began to shake, dust and debris began to rain down on the couple in the now empty and dark chamber.

Kim started to run up the stairs shouting behind her, "Come on Ron lets get out of here!"

"Right behind you KP! Come on Rufus!" Ron shouted as he scooped up his friend and deposited the worn out mole rat in his pocket.

Getting out of the house was a nightmare; floors buckled and twisted under the couple's feet making the footing traitorous to their needs. Furniture danced and toppled barely missing them as they scampered up the steps and across the main floor of the house. Glass shattered as the walls buckled and the house twisted on its foundation. All through the structure crashes could be heard and felt as the house seemed intent on shaking itself apart.

Kim and Ron reached the main door to find it wouldn't open to them. A quick check revealed that the door frame had warped and the door wouldn't open. Both of them threw their weight at the door together just to bounce off the stout oak construction. During this the house continued to dance, shake, and was beginning to lose any resemblance to a structure. Finally the two of them grabbed a shattered support column to batter the door open.

With a yell of relief both of them stumbled out onto the wide porch and then into the overgrown yard beyond it. They didn't stop until they were at the edge of the clearing; only then did the two of them turn back to watch what was happening.

The house kept twisting on its foundation; dancing and shaking as it slowly seemed to fall into itself. Almost as if it were being sucked down into the ground beneath it, with a final shudder and groan it crumpled to the ground and gradually disappeared into the ground itself leaving just a hole where the house once stood; a scar upon the land to mark a place where terrible things had once happened.

Team Possible clung to each other for support as they watched the death throes of the structure before them. Then with a sigh of relief they turned to each other.

"Is it finally over?" Ron asked.

"I hope so Ron, I hope so." Kim answered as she leaned in to kiss his cheek. "Come on Ron lets Ace this place."

They made their way through woods that didn't seem so threatening or ominous anymore. Their way lit by the light of a waning moon the couple, lost in their own thoughts, made their way to the Sloth and home.

**Epilogue 1**

It had been two weeks since 'The Halloween Incident' as the newspapers were calling it had occurred.

Reports of strange lights, mysterious weaknesses, earth tremors and sightings of strange things; would make this a Halloween that people wouldn't soon forget.

But people were resilient and the talk around town had already turned to the upcoming Thanksgiving weekend and the latest Team Possible rescue of several hikers in the mountains.

Kim sat on her bed and pondered the strange sitch they had been in two weeks ago. Some judicious questioning by her, revealed that Ron had no memory of what had happened to him when he had been Paisley's captive. He was still heaping praise on her for rescuing him and lamenting that he hadn't been more help. Kim was embarrassed by Ron's constant boasting about something she had nothing to do with. What troubled her most was if that was what Ron could do when he went 'full monkey', Kim had no doubt that his Mystical Monkey Power was responsible for their rescue, what was he capable of doing when he had full control of it ? And what would her reaction be to it when he did it? And just what circumstances would warrant it? Would she be shocked, frightened, or just run into his arms and embrace him?

"Kimmy, Ron's here." Anne Possible's voice broke through Kim's thoughts. Seconds later Ron's tussled hair appeared in her hatch way followed by warm brown eyes and his goofy grin.

"Hey KP you have a package here. The U.P.L man was just about to deliver it and I told him I would give it to you."

Kim took the package and opened it. Inside was a lot of packing. After she had removed it he looked in surprise at what had revealed to her: a Flamingoat, the rarest of the cuddle buddies. She removed it from the box and held it at arms length. She had only see one of these things once, well twice if you count when DNAmy's Mt. Middleton lair had blown up and one had flown past her; but here she was, holding one. _Where had it come from? Who could have sent it?_

She turned misting eyes to Ron and choked out. "Ron did you...?"

"What? Get you that? Do you know hard to find one of those things is? Sorry KP I didn't do it." _As much as I tried_ Rom murmured under his breath.

"Well then who?"

"There's a note at the bottom of the box, maybe it's from an admirer." Ron stated as he picked up the note and handed it to her.

Kim opened the note and read:

_Dear Miss Possible,_

_I wish to present to you a small token of appreciation for you team's invaluable help in collecting a wayward servant._

_Perhaps, in the future, we will work together again instead of cross purposes as we usually do._

_P.S. The Flamingoat was Paisley's; I doubt he has any use for it now._

_Take care...._

Kim's eyes had grown to the size of dinner plates by the time she had finished reading the note. Dumbfounded, she regarded the rare plush in her hands as the Flamingoat's glassy brown eyes stared back at her with an unsettling hollowness that sent a shiver down her spine.

**Epilogue 2**

"All right people listen up!" Steve Barkin, jack-of-all-trades, of Middleton High School bellowed.

"Miss Guide, our SKIP councilor, has informed me that we have another student that will be transferring here to Middleton High. She should be here shortly so let's make her feel welcome."

"That's an order people!" he shouted.

Kim and Ron watched as the door to the classroom opened and a young girl walked in. She was young, not more than eleven or twelve at most, slender in form with a mass of curly brown hair. Kim gasped when she turned to face the class. She had deep blue eyes, almost black, with a look of awareness that someone so young should not have. She was dressed in blue jeans and an oversized Mad Dogs sweatshirt. Around her neck a red jewel hung suspended from a delicate gold chain.

"Kim is that.....?" Ron started to question her.

"It sure looks like her, except she's dressed differently; I would swear that's......."

"Ladies and Gentlemen: let me introduce Abigail Caruthers. Abigail has traveled a great distance to be here with us. Let's make her feel welcome."

Abigail smiled and looked directly at Team Possible as she remarked, "I'm sure that I'll get along with everyone here just fine."

**Epilogue 3**

The bedroom was silent the moonlight fell upon the young woman who slept cradled in the arms of Morpheus. Her bright red hair was spread out and surrounded her head like a red halo; which caught the light and seemed to shimmer in its intensity. In her arm she clutched her ever present Panderoo; ensuring her a restful and untroubled sleep. On the shelf, across the room, her newest acquisition the Flamingoat, sat and regarded the young woman before it with expressionless eyes; eyes that briefly were tinged with a darkness that had no earthly compassion.

There was a slight shimmer in the air and a young girl, no more that eleven or twelve walked up to the sleeping girl's still form. Gently, almost reverently, she placed her hand on her brow and moved a stray hair from her face. She regarded the sleeping form before her and spoke softly,

"I'm sorry Miss Possible, but you saw things that you were not meant to see until much later. Your foreknowledge could disrupt a critical juncture in this Universe. I suggest you forget what you saw in that chamber. You did not see Ron Stoppable use his Mystical Monkey Power to stop Aaron Caruthers from killing him. You stopped him instead. He was just another whack villain you run into all the time and nothing special happened there."

During this speech the young girl placed her hand on Kim's forehead and closed her eyes in concentration. As she did this the jewel that hung around her neck began to glow brighter until the whole room was bathed in its radiance. She stepped back from the bed as the glow died down and watched Kim intently.

Kim took a deep breath, held it for a minute than breathed out and settled into a deeper sleep.

The young girl then turned and walked to the shelf where the Flamingoat stood. She regarded it with those deep blue, fathomless eyes and spoke softly to it.

"They are mine, under my protection, by the ancient pact. Leave and find your playthings elsewhere."

A presence seemed to stir about the rare plush and then evaporate in the night. Satisfied the young girl turned to the sleeping form of Kim Possible and said quietly, "You really should get rid of that thing Miss Possible it's quite ugly and unpleasant to look at, don't you think?"

Kim stirred slightly at the sound of her voice then drifted off to sleep again a slow smile formed on her face.

"Dream your dreams of love and laughter Kim Possible. Enjoy this time in your life. I see great things in your life; if you survive."

She turned to leave but paused to look over her shoulder. "Good night Kim Possible and pleasant dreams."

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A/N Yeah I know this was supposed to be in Zaratan's Halloween contest but, better late than never. I'm only a month behind that's not too bad!


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